Pile fabric and its manufacture



March 27, 1934. E T 1,952,407

FILE FABRIC AND ITS MANUFACTURE Filed July 12, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet l WW ma v M I;

INVENTOR:

TTORNEYS.

' March 27, 1934. A, BEA Y 1,952,407

FILE FABRIC AND ITS MANUFACTURE Filed July 12,1933 2..Sheets-Sheet 2 WI TNESSEg) INVENTOR:

Q51 irence fliieafy, I Q W% W i E V TTORNEYS.

Patented Mar. 27, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENTOF'FICB rmE memo. AND ITS MANUFACTURE Terence A. Beaty, Philadelphia. Pa., assignor to Artloom Corporation, Philadelphia, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application July 12,1933, Serial No. ($0,109

9 Claims.

especially for outer garments like overcoats, jack- 1 ets, etc. This fabric'is strong, durable, relatively light in proportion to its warmth, and adapted to be easily and inexpensively manufactured. Various other features and advantages of my invention will. appear from the following description, and fromthe drawings. So far as novel over the art, indeed, all the features herein illustrated or described are of my invention.

In the drawings, Fig. I is a view of the front 7 face of a pile fabric embodying my invention.

Fig. II shows a longitudinal section through' the fabric taken as indicated by the line and ar rows II--II in Figs. I and III, but'on a larger scale than Fig. I.

Fig. III is a view of the on a larger scale than Fig. I.

Fig. IV is a view like Fig. II showing the fab ric as it comes from the loom, before the pebble surface of Figs. I and II has been imparted to it.

Fig. V is a diagrammatic sectional view through an apparatus for treating the fabric shown in Fig. VI is a fragmentary view on a larger scale, illustrating the securing and brushing of the fabric in Fig. V. Y Y

Fig. VII is a diagrammatic sectional view through an apparatus for further treatment of the fabric.

Fig. VIII is a diagrammatic sectional view of apparatus suitable for still further treating the fabric.

i As shown in Figs. I and II, my completed fabric has a foundation web 10, shown as woven,

and a face consisting of pile tufts ll anchoredin the web 10 and having the fibers oftheir unanchored ends matted and felted. together promiscuously into pad-like clumps 12 of irregular sizes and outlines, presenting a fpebbled appearanceresembling that of a sheeps pelt. These felt pebble-pads 12 are clearly defined and dis tinct, and are here shown as definitely divided by deep furrows 12a open right. back to the foundation 10,-whose texture may even be seen in the furrows. The number of pile tufts 11 whose fibers are united in each of the clumps or pads 12 .will naturally vary according to the size of the pads; and in some instances, the fibers of a particular pile-tuft 11 may be divided amongst two or more adjacent pads 12. As shown in Fig.

back of the fabric, also' II, the cluster or' group of pile tufts 11 involved in a pad 12 are not completely merged, but only united and capped by the pad,and thus segregated from the adjacent pile tufts 11 and pads 12. .However, the interlacing of the 'pile fibers in the clumps or pads 12 is sufficiently intimate and secure to insureagainst disruption of the pads by the stresses of handling, or by the wear and tear. on the material in service or in clean- As shown in Figs. II and III, the foundation web 10 is loosely woven of interlaced warps 13 and wefts 14 of fine gage yarns, which may be of cotton well or fairly tightly twisted. The pile tufts 11 are shown as of relatively. heavy pile yarn, preferably wool only lightly twisted. While some twist of the pile yarn is necessary from the weavers point of view, yet from the point of view 'of .the operator carrying out my process, such twist of the pile yarn should be as little as will enable the fabric to be woven satisfactorily. As a matter of construction, the pile tuftsll are in pairs, each pair formed by a pile strand 15 that is double-anchored in the foundation. 10, by engaging under two alternate wefts 14 and over the intermediate weft 14, after the manner of a W weave. adjacent pile tuft pairs or strand units 15. As shown, the texture of the fabric F may be termed a three pick W weave.

The looseness of weave of the foundation web 10 allows desirably small pebbles l2 to'be produced in the pileby the subsequent treatment;

and the fineness of the foundation yarns 13, 14

' has 'a like tendency. A tight foundation weave ordinary overcoats and the like. This is a natu- There are also weft shots 14 between ral consequence of having more pile ends per unit of fabric area.

In my preferred process of manufacture, the first step is the making of a pile fabric F such as shown in-Fig. IV, which may preferably be produced as a cut-pile fabric on suitable looms (not shown). In this initial fabric F, the pile tufts l1 are isolated and project perpendicularly from the foundation 10: however, the anchorage of thepile strands 15 in the web 10 as described above holds them effectively against pulling out in the processing which the fabric undergoes,-even though they are not secure enough to stand ordinary wear and-tear if this initial fabric F were attempted to be. used' as it comes from the loom, without any such further treatment as I give it.

This fabric F of Fig. IV having been produced in any suitable way, I first scour and soften it, and separate or unravel the pile fibers somewhat, as by brushing. For this treatment I may use an after described.

The scouring and brushing treatment may be carried out in an apparatus such as shown in Fig. V, consisting of a tub or vat 16 for the boiling hot scouring solutionj a rapidly revolving rotary brush 17 mounted in suitable bearings above the liquor in the tub, with provision for vertical adjustment; a pair of supporting guide rollers 18, 19, equidistant at opposite sides of the brush l7; and guide rods 20, 21 submerged in the liquor,-besides a leading-in roller 22 mounted over one edge of the tub 16, a pair of suitably driven-squeeze rolls 23, 23 mounted above the tub at its opposite side, an accumulating receptacle 24 for the cloth in front of the entrance roller 22, and a guide roller 25 over the front side of the receptacle 24. In practice, I may stitch or tack together the ends of a length of some to 100 yards of the fabric F, and run it several times through the apparatus, in the direction indicated by the arrows, with its piled face toward the brush 17, as shown. The brush 17 is ad-' justed vertically relative to the associated guide rollers 18, 19 so as to open up the fibers of the pile tufts 11 of the fabric F only part of their length,say about two-thirds,-leaving them with their original twist substantially unaffected for the rest of the distance,say about onethird, above their anchorage in the foundation web 10. This point is of considerable importance for the attainment of the desired irregularly broken pebbled surface in the subsequent treat-' ment of the fabric: i. e.,'if the pile tufts 11 were unraveled all the way back to their roots or anchorage in the foundation l0, the pile would be flabby and flat, and the subsequent treatment might simply produce a nap,--or, at most, only felting of the ravelled fibers over the whole face of the fabric so that it would present a more or less uniform felted surface, without the desired pebble. The separation or raveling of the pile yarn fi ers is facilitated by the softening action of the soapy solution.

In the felting process for which this scouring and brushing prepares the fabric, the first step is a fulling or felting operation with an alkali felting solution (such as a strong solution of pure white soap, about 3% by weight, used boiling), whereby the fibers of the free ends of random groups of pile tufts 11 are matted and felted together, promiscuously, into pad-like clumps corresponding substantially or approximately to the clumps 12 of Fig. I, though less perfectly and completely developed. This felting may be done in an apparatus such as commonly employed for dyeing fabric in rope form, diagrammatically shown in Fig. VII as comprising a tub or vat 2'7 to hold the-boiling felting solution, and a revolving slatted roll 28 mounted some feet above the liquor in the vat 2'7, and suitably driven. On its removal from the apparatus shown in Fig. V, the length of cloth, with its ends still tacked together, is put over the'roll 28 and run through the boiling hot solution in the vat 27 for about. 35 minutes, more or less. This is done with the cloth irregularly folded and bunched together into a sort of rope form, rather than spreadout evenly as in the brushing and scouring operation of Fig. V. Such irregular folding and twisting of the fabric facilitates and augments the desired matting and felting of the free fiber ends into the pebble-like clumps or pads 12'.

The fabric having been suificiently feltedas just described, its ends are detached from one another and it is partially dried on a -tenter dryer (not shown) at a temperature up to some 280 F.,leaving it, however, slightly damp. From the tenter dryer, the cloth is run off through the usual fanning device and fanned down on a truck (not shown).

The next felting step which I preferably employ is to tumble the fabric in arevolving tumbling box such as shown in Fig. VIII, thereby further developing and emphasizing the broken pebble surface produced by the fulling operation. As shown in Fig. VIII, the tumbling box may consist of a rectangular receptacle 30 having a removable lid 31, and provided with trunnions 32, 32 at its opposite ends. These trunnions 32, 32 are mounted in bearings in upright standards 33, 33, so that the box may revolve about a horizontal axis. The lid 31 being open, the fabric is pushed or fed into the box 30 carelessly and at random, by hand, so as to stow in the box as irregularlyas possible. That is, instead of allowing it to fold flat on the bottom of the box, it is crumpled, creased, and bunched up as much and as irregularly as may be. More than one piece of cloth may be put into a single box 30,

if the latter is large enough; but care should be taken not to fill the box more than about half full, in order to secure an adequate tumbling effect on the cloth by revolution of the box. The lid 31 having been closed and secured, the box is revolved at a slow. rate of speed (say 10 R. P. M.) by any suitable means (not shown) for about 20 to 30 minutes, and the moist fabric thus indiscriminately tumbled about. As a result of the sleaziness of the foundation 10 and the softness of the pile fibers due to the preceding treatment, it easily kinks and crumples in all directions. By the tumbling, the pile fiber clumps or pads 12 are flattened down and tightened, and

their fibers more thoroughly entangled.

After tumbling, the fabric is removed from the box 30 and preferably subjected to another step or operation which contributes to felt it and develop and tighten the pebble pads 12 i. e., dyeing in a suitable way. For this, its ends are tackedtogether again, and it is dyed in rope form in boiling dye. This may be done by means of a dyeing apparatus (not shown) of the same general typeas that used for the felting operation as shown in Fig. VII. In this rope dyeing operation, the fabric is not twisted like ordinary rope, but merely folded, gathered and creased haphazardly into a compact form. Instead of running undisturbed, this rope" should be manipulated so as to shift and alter its folds continually, in order to avoid streakiness and to increase the felting and tightening effect of the boiling dye liquor on the felted clumps or pebble pads 12. The dyeing treatment may ordinarily last some 90 minutes, more or less. The dye liquor is run off from the vat and water run in, and the fabric washed, and then the water is extracted from it, all as usual after dyeing, andit is 'dried on a tenter dryer .(not shown) at a temperaturefof about 280 F. up to some 320 F. Under this high heat, the matted and felted fibers in the' pebble pads 12 contract and curl tighter very quickly, before the rest of the fabric has fully dried, thus increasing the interlock of the fibers and further tightening and fortifying the pads 12 against any possibility of pulling apart in subsequent handling or use of the fabric.

The fabric may then undergo the usual finishing operations, such as shearing, etc.

By prolonging and intensifying the felting operation, with a stronger felting solution, it may sometimes be found practicable to produce a sufficiently satisfactory pebble effect without tumbling; although I do not at present deem this generally preferable. Prolongation or intensification of the dyeing operation (as to its tightening action) may also help toward securing a satisfactory "pebble without tumbling. If tumbling were omitted, the partial drying after fulling would also be omitted: i. e., the wet felted Iv. fabric would go from the felting apparatus of Fig. VII directly to the dyeing apparatus. The

final drying of the fabric after dyeing should also be prolonged in this case.

In cases where the fabric is not dyed, but left white, considerable prolongation and intensification of the felting or fullingoperation may 1 f likewise be necessary: e. g., it may be advisable to full the fabric in a standard fulling machine for double the length of time that would be required in the apparatus of Fig. VII if the fabric were subsequently going Ito be dyed as described above. This application is a continuation in part of March 22, 1933, as to common subject-matter disclosed and claimed.

Having thus described my invention, I claim: 1. A method or step for producing apebblefaced pile fabric, which comprises felting a pile tially covered with projecting pile yarns whose fiber ends .are separate, loose, and feltable, while the portions of the yarn fibers next the foundation are twisted together, thereby segregating the pile yarns into random clusters and permanently matting and felting their fiber ends into separate felt pebble pads capping the yarn clusters.

2. A process of making a pebble-faced pile fabric which comprises ravelling and separating the fiber ends of pile yarns projecting from and substantially covering. a textile foundation, while leaving portions of such yarns next the foundation substantially unaifected,.and felting the fab- ""ric and thereby segregating the pile yarns into random clusters and permanently matting and felting their fibers into felt pebble-pads capping the yarn clusters.

fabric which comprises securing a fabric composed of a textile foundation substantially covered with projecting pile yarns, and ravelling and separating the ends of the fibers of the'pile yarns while leaving portions of such yarns next the foundation substantially unaffected; and 5 felting the fabric and thereby segregating the pile yarns into random clusters and permanently felt pebble-pads capping the yarn clusters.

. 4. A process of making a pebble-faced pile faboric which comprises fabricating a fabric composed of a loose-textured foundation and projecting pile yarns anchored therein; scouring and brushing the fabric, and thereby ravelling my application Serial Number 662,021, filed.

I fabric composed of a textile foundation substan-V 3. A process of making a pebble-faced pile matting and felting their fiber ends into separate and separating the fiber ends of its pile yarns while leaving portions of such yarns next the foundation substantially unafiected; and felting the fabric and thereby segregating the pile yarns into random clusters, and promiscuously matting and felting their fiber ends into separate pebblepads capping the yarn clusters.

5. A process of making a pebble-faced pile fabric which comprises securing and brushing a fabric composed of a loose-textured foundation and projecting pile yarns anchored therein, thereby ravelling and separating the ends of the fibers of the pile yarns only; felting the fabric and thereby segregating the pile yarns into random clusters, and promiscuously matting and felting their free fiber ends into separate pebblepads; and thereafter dyeing the fabric in rope form in boiling dye, and thus tightening its said pebble-pads.

6. A process of making a pebble-faced pile fabric which comprises scouring and brushing a fabric composed of a loose-textured foundation and projecting pile yarns anchored therein, thereby ravelling and separating the ends only of the fibers of the pile yarns; felting the fabric and thereby segregating the pile yarns into random clusters, and promiscuously matting and felting their free fiber ends into separate pebblepads; partially drying the fabric; and tumbling the fabric while moist, and thereby flattening and further developing its said pebble-pads.

7. A process of making a pebble-faced pile fabric which comprises securing and brushinga fabric composed of a loose-textured foundation and projecting pile yams anchored therein, thereby ravelling and separating the ends only of the pile yarn fibers; felting the fabric and thereby segregating the pile yams into random clusters, and promiscuously matting and felting their free fiber ends into separate pebble-pads; partially drying the fabric, and tumbling it while moist and thus flattening and further developing its pebble pads; and thereafter dyeing the fabric in rope form in boiling dye and thereby tightening its said pebble-pads.

8. A process of making a pebble-faced pile fabric which comprises securing and brushing a fabric composed of a loose-textured foundation and projecting pile yarns anchored therein, thereby ravelling and separating the ends of the pile yarn 125 fibers only; felting the fabric and thereby segregating the pile yarns into random clusters, and promiscuously matting and felting their free fiber ends into separate pebble-pads; dyeing the fabric in rope form in boiling dye, and thus tightening its said pebble-pads; and thereafter drying the fabric at high temperature under tension, and thus further tightening the pebble-pads.

9. A process of making a pebble-faced pile fabric which comprises scouring and brushing a fabric composed of a loose-textured foundation and projecting pile yarns anchored therein, thereby ravelling and separating the ends of the fibers of the pile yams only; felting the fabric and thereby segregating the pile yarns into, random 

